Invisible
by The Needless Lobsters
Summary: When Finn's new neighbor, Rachel, moves into the abandoned apartment next door to his, he's immediately drawn to her. But what if, the one person you thought you could fall in love with, wasn't able to love you back? What if you were the only one who could see them? What if they weren't even human?
1. Love Looks Not With The Eyes

It was just like any other Saturday morning for Finn Hudson, or so he thought.

His morning routine consisted of getting up, getting dressed, then going out for a run around central park, before coming back to his large apartment, which he shared with three other guys, and putting on the sports channel, drinking beer, and writing music.

He came home at around, eight thirty, a little later than usual.

His apartment was located on the Upper East Side of New York City, and it was a very comfortable place to live. All the neighbours were nice; well, those he knew, anyway. His apartment was situated on the sixth floor, of a nine floor building, and he had only one neighbour, and had done for the past three years.

James, his neighbour was leaving his apartment dressed in his uniform. James worked for the New York Police Department, as a cop, which made Finn feel very safe, knowing that if anyone was to break in, James would hear it (the walls in the apartment were fairly thin, so you could hear about almost anything if you weren't careful. It was kind of an inconvenience for Finn and his roommates, due to the fact that they lived below a very in-love couple, who went at it like rabbits, almost every day.)

Finn removed his hat, as he reached the floor where his apartment was, and was startled.

There was a small, petite brunette, unlocking the door to the apartment next to his, carrying a box of her belongings, with several others on the floor. She fumbled with the keys, trying to make sure not to drop the box she was holding, before putting it into the lock, and pushing the door open.

She peered inside, and smiled. The apartment was completely empty - no furniture, nothing, which meant that it was perfect for her to decorate.

She placed the first box inside the door, before collecting another.

Finn, being the chivalrous man he is, saw this as the perfect opportunity.

"Hey!" he shouted, the girl turning to look at him.

She was beautiful. She had the most amazing brown eyes he'd ever seen, and her nose was slightly larger than most, but was incredibly cute, and seemed to fit her perfectly, and her lips were rosy red, and looked so soft and kissable. She was quite short, and there definitely was a very large height difference between them - him being a giant, at 6'3", and her being not much taller than 5'2".

"Um, Hi?" she asked, unsure as to why he was speaking to her. She assumed that he was her neighbour, but you could never really tell when it came to New York.

"Hi, are you moving in here?" he asked, realizing how stupid he sounded, considering she had boxes of her belongings.

"Yes I am. I'm Rachel. Rachel Berry." She extended her hand, which he gladly shook gently, trying not to break her fingers.

"I-I'm Finn. Finn Hudson."

"I know." She replied.

"You know who I am?" he asked, slightly afraid. Nobody knew who he was in this place, aside from his roommates and James.

"I, uh, I-I spoke to the landlord, when I came up… he said that I'd be living next to three men - Mike, an Asian dancer; Puck, a guy with a Mohawk, and Finn, the freakishly tall one. Since you're neither Asian, nor do you have a Mohawk, I kind of guessed."

"Oh, right, okay." He saw her go to pick up another box, but stopped her, putting his hand on her arm. "Let me get that for you." He said.

"Thanks." She replied, with a warm smile.

There was something about this girl that Finn liked. He couldn't explain it, but he was drawn to her, and he didn't know why. He just was.

"So, how comes your moving in here?" he asked.

"I, um, I saw this place. It looked really nice, so I asked if there were any apartments available. He said this one was free, as nobody has lived here for a while, and said would I want it. I said yes."

"Oh, cool."

Finn placed the box on the ground, and sighed. He was normally awkward with girls, that was nothing knew; and he knew that conversations were not his thing, but somehow, he was neither awkward, nor were his conversation skills bad around this girl. For some reason, she seemed to make him very… nervous.

"How did you end up living with three guys?" she asked

"We knew each other in high school. Puck was, and still is my best friend. We met Mike in college when he was taking his classes in dance. Sam, we met him at a strip club."

Rachel seemed to choke on the air surrounding her, Finn gently patting her on the back.

"Strip Club. How… interesting."

Finn smirked. _Great, douche bag. Now she thinks you're gay._

"I'm not gay. If that's what you want to know."

Rachel nodded. _Phew._

She smiled at Finn, as he brought in the other boxes of hers. She couldn't explain it, but she was drawn to him, in a way that was different to all the others. All the other guys that she was 'assigned', came off very… strangely. There was something about Finn though, that made her feel comfortable and safe. There was something about him, which gave her hope. Maybe he was her answer. Maybe he was the one she needed to help her.

"Is that everything?" he asked her, to which she nodded.

"Well, I guess I should be going then."

"Uh… Finn?" she asked, as he began to walk away

"Yes?" he replied, turning back to her.

"Could you stay for a little while? I'd like to get to know you. I-I mean, as my neighbour…"

"I'd like that." He said, closing the door behind him.

"So dudes, guess what?"

"What?" replied Mike, as he stopped dancing in the middle of the kitchen of their apartment.

"We have a new neighbour."

Puck choked on the peanuts he was eating, and Sam practically spat his beer everywhere.

"That's not possible. The last time I checked, James still lived next door."

"No. I mean Apartment 3B."

"Dude? Nobody's lived there for years…"

"I know. But there is now. Her name's Rachel, and she's gorgeous. She loves to sing, and she's from California."

"What? That's ridiculous."

"If you don't believe me, go and see for yourself."

Finn, Puck, Mike and Sam all made their way to Rachel's apartment, knocking on the door. When there was no answer, Finn knocked again. After the third time, he decided it would be better for him to go inside and check she was alright.

He gently kicked the door, making sure to not break it off its hinges, the door flying open.

"Hello? Rachel?" asked Finn, as he made his way inside with the other three guys.

"Finn?" asked Rachel, entering the bathroom, covered only in a towel. Finn dribbled, realising he was staring and averted his gaze from her. "Sorry, I was in the shower."

"I can see that." He replied, a blush creeping onto his face.

Puck, Mike and Sam stood in confusion. Who was he talking to?

"Dude… theres nobody there."

"What are you talking about? Rachel's right there. Dressed in a towel."

"Dude-"

"No. Shut up. I'm trying to talk to Rachel."

"Finn-"

"No, Rachel, please ignore Puck. He's an arrogant asshole sometimes. We just wanted to come by to welcome you to the apartment… You did all this while I was gone?"

"Yeah… It's not much, but it's comfy."

"I think it's great."

"Finn-" spoke Sam.

"Shut up."

"Finn-"

"Just stay quiet for two minutes."

"Rachel? Do you want to come to our apartment…. I mean… if you want to…"

"I-I can't Finn."

"Why?"

"First of all, I'm naked under this towel… which you probably already guessed because I saw you staring at me earlier. And secondly, I just can't."

"But why?"

"I just can't Finn, okay? I just can't okay. Just give it a rest."

"I'm Sorry."

"It's okay. Just… I'll come over soon okay?"

"Finn!" Puck shouted.

"WHAT?"

"We can't see her."

"What do you mean?"

"We can't see her. All we see is an empty apartment. Theres nobody there…"

Puck, Sam and Mike, headed back into their apartment, leaving Finn dumbfounded. He turned back to Rachel, and before he could speak, she opened her mouth first.

"They're right, Finn."

_"What?"_

"They can't see me. Just like they can't see my apartment. To them, I don't exist."

"What? How is that possible?"

"You're the only one who can see me… You're the only one who is _supposed_ to see me."


	2. The In-Between

Finn stood there in confusion, as the guys left her apartment.

"What's going on Rachel? I don't understand. How comes I'm the only one who can see you?"

"You might want to sit down" she replied, handing him a glass of water, as he perched himself on the side of her couch

"It's a long story."

"I've got time."

Rachel sighed and closed her eyes. She got up, and walked into her bedroom, changing into more appropriate clothes, than the towel she was wearing, emerging several minutes later; Finn now sat in the middle of the couch, staring out the window.

He put his glass down on the coffee table in front of him, and turned to look at her as she sat beside him.

"Help me understand, Rachel."

"When I was five, my mom, Kate, she walked out on me and my dad. According to him, she just packed a suitcase and left, without saying goodbye, or any explanation. The last time we heard from her was on my sixth birthday. Anyway, when I was eleven, my dad, he started dating this woman, Cassie, and she seemed like the nicest person in the world. She was kind, funny, and she had two daughters, both older than myself, which I loved because I'd always wanted siblings."

"But she wasn't everything she seemed?"

Rachel shook her head.

"When I was twenty, I was still living at home, with my dad and Cassie, and things couldn't have been better. That was, until my dad died. They'd been married for a few years, and she was somewhat secretive around him, but it was never anything serious, or so I thought. Anyway, after his death, things changed, and she went from kind, and sweet, to a stone cold bitch. I didn't really understand what happened, as it all came so quickly. All I know is that she blamed me for what happened to him. She said that I caused him so much stress that its my fault he died, and that I should have never been born in the first place."

"I'm so sorry, that's awful."

"I'm not done."

"Go on…

"It was soon after that her secret came to light. It turns out she was one of very few, who had been born into a 'special' family, whose genes were unlike any other. She was a witch. A witch with powers, and all of the hocus pocus shit."

"What does this have to do with you being invisible?"

"She cursed me. She cursed me with _everything_ she had. It killed her - literally. She said that if she couldn't be with the one she loves, then neither could I. In doing so, she cursed everyone from where I'm from. They're all victims who are forced to suffer the same fate as myself, due to one curse."

"Can't you just reverse the curse or something?"

"I have no idea. From what I gather, when a curse is put upon a kingdom, and the individual who cursed them dies… after a period of time…the magic becomes permanent. There is no known way to break a permanent curse. I've heard of rumours of it being done, but nothing has ever been proven. "

Finn looked down to the floor, tears beginning to fill his eyes. Rachel tilted his head up towards her.

"Hey, don't cry. It's okay."

"_How_ is it okay? Nobody can see you, how do you go to work? What do you do all day?"

"I sing. Write music. Normal stuff people do for hobbies. I go out for walks."

"What about food? How do you eat?"

"I live in a realm in between my world, and yours. I have access to everything you guys do - food, water, all of it. The only difference: when I go out somewhere, theres nobody else around, but other people like me."

"What do you mean people like you? Is your world between the two, just… _empty?_"

"Yes… _and_ no. Picture everything in New York. The busy streets, the skyscrapers, the hot dog stands, central park, times square. Now take out all the people, except for a few. The few that are still there, are people like me. They live in the in-between."

"And what about me? I'm not magical. I don't live in the in-between. How comes_ I_ can see you?"

"You're special."

"_Me? Special?_ I don't think so. I'm just an average guy, with an average job, living an average life."

"You're special, because you can see me. You've been chosen to see me. Only the chosen ones can see those who live in between realms. Like me. I live in-between your world, and my own. I am in fact, magical. I have powers, but that's the other thing about the curse. She stripped me of them; hence, I'm stuck here."

"What do you mean, Chosen One?"

"Every one thousand years, one individual throughout the world, is chosen, who is both from the magical kingdom, and the human realm, to live umongst those in the human realm. This chosen one, has power, more power than you could ever imagine. This chosen one has the power to combine the two world. This chosen one, has the power to free all souls from the inbetween."

"And I'm the chosen one? You're kidding, _right?_ This is some sort of joke?"

"I'm afraid not, Finn."

"Hang on. You said magical. I'm not magical. I've never lived in the magical kingdom. I'm Finn Hudson. I'm as human as they get."

"You don't have to live in the magical kingdom to be from the magical kingdom. If one of your parents is from the kingdom, and they fall in love with a human while in the human realm, chances are a chosen one is born, and in this case, the chosen one happens to be you."

_"And I'm supposed to save you?"_

"In a sense yes. There is something else."

"It couldn't get any worse?"

"My step-mother. Her power went beyond just cursing me. She ruled the magical kingdom. When she died, the whole kingdom vanished. Literally. It vanished into thin air… and the thing is… nobody knows where it is. People guess that the kingdom itself got forced into the inbetween, but nobody really knows."

"And if I break the curse on you, I break the curse on the people in the inbetween, and thus, the magical kingdom, is restored, and everything goes back to normal?"

"Yes."

"That's easy enough."

"There is one catch."

"What?"

"You only have 75 days to break it."

"WHAT?"

"I'm sorry. I don't make the rules. A curse is a curse. According to the specifics, if the magic is reversed within 100 days then the curse can be broken."

"_Great._ All I have to do is break god-only-knows what kind of curse the bitch put on you, and I have a little over three months to do it? _Because this isn't a problem at all."_

She turned his face to look at her, their eyes locking together.

"Please, Finn. Please save us."

He sighed. There was something about her, that he couldn't place. He felt like she was hiding something, or she knew more than she was letting on. He didn't know whether he wanted to save them, to save her, but his next words slipped out of his mouth, before his brain could even process what he was about to get himself into.

"Okay."


End file.
